The tale of Kaori
by Lyra Akagami
Summary: "A story about a young ninja woman (Kaori) from Konoha, who realizes that there is much more to the world than she thought." Hey guys, so this is my first exerpt of my first story ever. Please tell me if you are curious to see more of it. Hope you like it! :)
1. A familiar village

**Prologue**

It was a sunny afternoon. Kaori looked up at the huge door with the writing « Konohagure » above it. She sighs. It sure has been a long time since she left this place. The young woman started walking past the door, at a relaxing pace. It wasn't long before familiar faces started to pop up from everywhere : « Oh my god, is that Kaori ?», « I can't believe you are back ! I'm so happy to see you ! », « You sure grew up ! ». All Kaori could do was to greet everybody and smile awkwardly. She knew it would kind of be like that, but she couldn't help feeling almost intimidated by all those people giving her attention.

It took her almost an hour to arrive where she wanted. Again she sighs. This time it wasn't a relaxed sigh, it was more tensed and annoyed. Although she just had faced half of the village, the person she was about to meet now was far more intimidating. She knocks and opens the door slowly. She first heard angry shouting before she could see anything. As soon as she opened the door completly the shouting stopped. In front of her was a desk, a blond woman behind it, catching her breath. Next to the desk stands a young woman with short black hair, terrified. The blonde woman looks at Kaori for 10 seconds, her eyes wide open. Then, in not even a second she hugged the young girl tight, so tight that she had the impression her bones would simply break « My daughter, my DAUGHTER IS BACK ! I'm so happy ! ».

Though, right after she said that, she stopped hugging Kaori in order to throw her punch so powerful, the young woman passed right through the wall behind her. The blonde woman looked at her furiously « WHY DID U TAKE SO MUCH TIME ? HOW DARE YOU NOT GIVING ME ANY NEWS FOR MONTHS AND SHOW UP UNNANOUNCED ? I WAS ABOUT TO HAVE A HEART ATTACK YOU KNOW ?! ». While shouting that, she advanced towards Kaori with the intend to throw her another punch. « Tsunade-sama, please calm down ! »,said firmly, but also panicked, the young woman next to the desk. She was advancing towards the other two. Tsunade looked at Kaori suspiciously, and then, before Kaori knew it, she was in her arms again. But this time it was a much more soft and gentle hug. « I've missed you so much », Tsunade whispered. Kaori smiled. She wasn't surprised by her mothers crazyness when it came to her. « I've missed you too mom. I'm glad to be back ».

Kaori goes slowly out of the hug and turned to the other woman « Hello Shizune. Long time no see ! ». Shizune smiled, more relaxed « It has been a long time, Kaori ! I hope you had a good trip ? » « It was amazing Shizune, I can't wait until I tell you about it ! ». Tsunade kissed her daughter on the cheek, then said, enthousiastically « YOSH ! This needs to be celebrated ! Let's go and drink ! ». Kaori laughed « You haven't changed a bit, haven't you ? » « Aww come on, we haven't got a drink together in such a long time ! Shizune will take care of the work here ! » « Tsunade-sama ! » said Shizune, not very happy about how responsible Tsunade was acting. « DO YOU HAVE COMPLAINS ?! » said Tsunade agressively. Immediatly Shizune backed off, terrified once more «Oh no, not at all ! Please go and enjoy your time Tsunade-sama ! ».

Tsunade calmed down, throw an arm around her daughter's shoulder, and together they started to walk out. Once outside, Tsunade looked at Kaori tenderly « Welcome home sweetheart. I'm so glad you are back ».


	2. Jiraya and Kakashi

_Hey guys, before I continue the story, i would like to give you a bit more infos about Kaori the main character._

_In this story, she is 22 years old. She is Tsunade's daughter. Her father was Tsunade's former lover, Dan. But he passed away before Tsunade even knew that she was pregant. This explains Kaoris looks : I'd imagine her looking very much like her mother, except her blue eyes, that came from her father._

_Kaori was born in Konoha and grew up there until she was 14. After the Uchiha incident, for (yet) unknown reasons, Tsunade thought it would be better for Kaori to leave the village for a while. That is why Tsuna and her daughter used to travel a lot, and visit many places together. Since she was Tsunade's pupil, Shizune went with them. That also explains the deep friendship between Kaori and her. Those trips were quite painful for Kaori, still full with memories about the village and the Uchiha accident. But we will see how this accident affected her a bit later._

_Kaori is a Jounin, who used to be trained by Tsunade herself. She inherited her strenghts, and her medical abilities._

_If I were to describe the relationship between Kaori and her mother, I would say that is it definitly… special. Kaori is Dan's legacy, which explains Tsunade's « crazyness » towards her. When it comes to her daughter, Tsunade can be a lot overprotective and often very intense._

_So yeah I think for now, that's all you need to know about her. If some things aren't clear, don't worry, everything will eventually unfold with the story ;)_

*sound of a bottle hitting the table* « Ahhhh, this Sake is really the best ! » said Tsunade while whiping her mouth with her hand. It was late in the afternoon. The sun started slowly to go down, spreading a beautiful red light all over the village. The two women were sitting in a little pub, in the center of the village. Kaori smiled « I brought you some Sake from abroad. ». Tsunade laughed « You know your old mother so well ! ». The two of them were sitting there since quite some time, talking about everything, making Kaori realize how much she missed being here.

Her trip started six months ago, when a representive from the Marines came to Konoha. The Marines are an organisation of over a hundred different countries. They are powerful in their military capacities and their influence. Kaori's mission was to leave with the representive to Marinford, the biggest Marines base in the entire world, in order to discuss the terms of an possible alliance. No decision was made yet, her stay was purely diplomatic. Her role was to find out more about this organisation before Konoha could give it it's trust.

Tsunade's tone changed « I know you will give me a complete report, but still, I have to ask : what do you think of them Kaori ? ». The young woman hesitated, before speaking up slowly « Their organisation is more powerful than we could have imagined. It sure would have its advantages to join them, since there are more and more pirates in our seas, but… ». « But ? » asked Tsunade. « I'm just not sure if we can trust them. We have to give it some more time, in order to find out more about them. ». « What made you feel that way ? ». « I don't know I'm not sure yet. But something tells me, we don't know half the things we should about the Marines. Before we take a decision, we have to be sure about their real purpose ». Tsunade's eyebrows went up « Their real purpose ? »

But before Kaori could answer, a man's voice says loudly « Ooooh isn't this our little Kaori ?! ». The young woman turned around, and saw two men. The one who talked was older, tall, with great white hair, smiling happily. The other was a younger man, in his late twenties, with grey hair, wearing a mask. She reconized both of them immediatly. « Uncle Jiraya, Kakashi ! Long time no see ! ». She stands up and hugged Jiraya soflty. He looked at her with affection « You kind of grew. Travelling does you good ». Kaori smiled and turned to the other man « How have you been, Kakashi ? ». She could see that he was smiling under his mask « Fine, how about you Kaori-sama ? Did your trip go well ? ». Kaori laughed « For the last time, stop calling me Kaori-sama ! Call me just Kaori ! ». Kakashi laughed nervously « Hahaha, I'm sorry ! Kaori. ». Both men sit down with the two woman. The rest of the time was mostly smalltalk. Jiraya, as usual, was talking about his travels and books, and Kakashi was, as usual silent.

When the night fell completly, Kaori stood up : « This was nice but I will have to go now ». Tsunade and Jiraya didn't even listen, they were both fully red, sweaty and chuckling like little kids. Kaori sighs once more. Kakashi stood up as well : « I will leave with you. I got things to do on my own ». The two of them stood up, and, after saying good night to Tsunade and Jiraya, leave the pub. Once they reached the street, Kakashi turned to Kaori « Kaori-sama, aren't you going home ? Your house is that way, remember ? » « Of course I remember, baka ! But I got one more person to see before I go home and rest. ». Kakashi smiles : « He will be very happy to see you. He was waiting for you. ». He came closer to her, his eyes softened : « I'm really happy to have you back here. I was afraid things might not go so well. ». Kaori chukles : « You were worried about me ? ». She could see Kakashi blushing under his mask. « I-I have to go now. Have a good night. » « You too, Kakashi ! ». And on that note, they parted ways.

Kaori walked slowly down the streets. It was a little weird to see Kakashi again, after what happened before she left… She thought she would get over it with that trip, but she realized, nothing's changed. *What am I going to do about that ?* , she thought. Then, she arrives in front of a house door. *Well, no matter what, I'm about to have a great time back here* . She smiled, and softly knocked on the door : « Naruto ? I'm finally back ! ».


	3. Mmhh RAMEN !

**Chapter 2 : Mmmh Ramen**

The door opened and a blonde boy appeared with a big smile on his face. «Kaori ! You finally came back ! ». He hugs her happily. « Come on in ! Let's eat together ! ». She walks into Naruto's place. It was a mess, as usual : there was garbage, dirty dishes and clothes everywhere. She gives him a little punch « Just because I left for some time, it doesn't mean that you can let yourself go like that baka ! ». « Ouuch ouch ouch, sooorry ! i was gonna clean up ya know ! ». She pulls his ear : « Liar ! ». He slowly goes out of her grip and puts his hands in front of him, meaning to apologize : « A-anyway, it's not important right now ! The important thing is that you are back and that we are going to eat ! For the occasion, I will prepare two portions of ramen, limited edition ! You gonna love it ya know ! ». Quickly he goes to the kitchen space and starts preparing the food. Kaori looks around the place one more, then started to clean up here and there

She smiles. Naruto was one of the persons that she missed the most. He was like a little brother to her, and this, since they were kids. When everybody was avoiding him, or mean to him, she always stood up for him. Seeing him, always alone, and hated by everyone was unbearable. That is why, she started to take care of him. People of the village looked at her in bad way because of that, but back then, she couldn't care less : she saw things in Naruto ,years ago, that the others only started to notice now. While she was picking up some clothes, she turns to Naruto : « How did things go here ? Anything new ? ». « Oh no not really. Same old same old. The only thing people are concerned about, is that we hear more and more often rumours about the Akatsuki. ». Kaori looked at him from the side : « Is that so ? ». « Yeah, but you should ask Tsunade-bachan for more details. You know I'm not good at those things, like remembering stuff… All I know is that they are coming for the Jinchuriki. ». « Which means, they may come for you soon. ». « Yup ! But don't worry ! I get stronger everyday ! ». Kaori laughed. He was always so positive about everything, it simply amazed her.

« You remind me of a boy I met during my trip. He thinks pretty much the same way as you, even though he is a pirate ! ». Naruto turned around in order to look at her : « A pirate ? I bet you kicked his ass ! ». « Acutally we were getting along quite well ! He is a very good person. Not that sharp, but his heart is in the right place. » . « But he is a pirate ! A criminal ! ». « That's how the Marines sees it. He is a criminal in the eyes of the Marines. ». Naruto looked up, thinking hard : « What do you mean by that ? Isn't the Marine the symbol of justice ?». Kaori sighs : « That's something complicated to explain. I will tell you all about it another time. Now it's time to eat raaaaamen ! ». As expected, the sound of the word ramen, turns Naruto's attention to the food : « Yes ! It's ready ! ». And so, they both sit down and start eating, like in the good old times.

After they finish their food, both sit comfortably, talking about everything they've missed out on. Kaori talked about her trip, Naruto talked about things that happened in Konoha during her absence. The young woman started to doze off a little. When she wakes up, she hears Naruto talking : « -because of Itachi ya know ». She frowned her eyebrows. « Itachi ? What about him ? ». « I just told you ya know ! You should listen to me when I talk ! Sasuke is still with Orochimaru, getting more and more powerful. And this because of Itachi. ». Uchiha Itachi. Kaori knew this name to well but hearing it feels like somebody stabbing her with a knife, everytime. Naruto looks at her concerned : « Huh ? Is something wrong Kaori ? ». « Uhm, noo, not at all ! » she says, trying to put on an innocent smile. But Naruto knew her too well. She couldn't fool him : « Is is about something I said ? About Sasuke ? Or Itachi ? ». She quickly stands up : « Oh no, not at all, everything is fine, I'm just a bit tired from my trip. I think I'll get going now. ». Naruto looks at her, a bit disappointed : « Oh, okay. Have a good night Kaori ! I was very happy to see you ! ». She gives him a kiss on the forhead : « Me too Naruto. I'll see you around ! ». Before she leaves the house, she turns around once more : « And you better clean up this place ! ». Naruto scratches his his head with a smile : «It's a promise ! ».

It wasn't long before she finally arrived home. Tsuna was sleeping on the couch, looking like she tried to wait for Kaori. The young woman, takes a sheet from a chair next to her, and puts it slowly on her mother. She kisses her mom good night, and goes to her room. It has been a while since she has seen her room. It felt nice and familiar. She washes up, changes clothes and lies down in her bed. This felt so great. * I didn't realize how tired I was up until now * she thought. Not long after, she falls asleep.


	4. Contact from the Marines

« The Marines made another move to contact us. They will not wait for a response any longer. Before we reach a decision, I want to know your position on this. ». Tsunade looked at the three other people in front of her. Kaori spoke first : « I've taken that you read my report. They are not to be trusted. ». Jiraiya intervened : « That we know, but the real question is : How would they react if we refuse ? I don't think they'll just back off… ». Kaori scratched the back of her head : « That is true. They won't take it very well. ». Kakashi finally speaks up : « The most important here, is the safety of the country. We can't make any drastic moves. If they were to attack us, we wouldn't stand a chance. Their military power is too big. ».

Tsunade sighed : « You are all right. But we have to come to a conclusion. Kaori, you said you had suspitions about them, but there is no proof of anything wrong. We can't accuse them of anyting, or use it to our advantage, unless we really know what is going on ». « I know Mom. That is why we need more time. Can't you arrange that with them ? ». « I can try. But we will have to reach a conclusion soon. The daimyo is asking many questions as well. ». On that note, she stood up : « You are all dismissed. But I'm counting on all of you to get some thinking done. This is not a decision I can make myself. I need to rely on you for that. ». Jiraiya, Kakashi and Kaori left the building. Once outside, Jiraiya turned around : « I would love to spend some more time with you too, but I need to take care of some things. See ya around ! ». He left the two in front the building.

An awkward silence started to take place. After a few minutes, Kakashi finally spoke : « I know this may sound a bit weird, but would you like to grap a bite ? ». Kaori couldn't hide her surprise : « Oh uhm, yeah sure ! Let's go ! ». They sat down at a small local restaurant. While they were waiting for their food, the young woman looked at Kakashi, and slowly started to talk : « We are never going to talk about it are we ? ». Kakashi turned slightly red, she could see it even with his mask on. « Well, I don't really want to push you or anything. I mean you came back from a long trip, you had to take care of many things… I just thought that it would be better to give you some space. ». Kaori smiled. Kakashi is a few years older than her, he has more experience in pretty much everything. She liked that. He wasn't like the other guys in her age. « Thank you Kakashi. I just hope things won't get weird between us- » « don't worry. Everything is fine. », he answered with a smile.

After this talk, both of them were more comfortable. They ended up talking about pretty much everything just like before. Kaori had to admit that she missed him a lot. Actually, during her trip, she found herself thinking about him way more than usual. *That was kind of weird* she thought to herself. Before Kakashi and her parted, she slowly kissed him on the cheek : « Thank you for the food. And you know, the thing we talked about earlier. ». He smiled : « No problem. I am glad that I could spend some time with you. I missed that ». Kaori laughed « Me too ! We got to do this more often ! ». On that note they parted ways. Kaori felt more light on her feet. *Everything will be back to normal from now on* she thought.

_( Hey guys, please don't hesitate to tell me what you think of my writing, the story and all that, so that I can improve myself and make this story more interesting ;) )_


	5. The Arrival of the Pirates

Since Kaori's arrival, several days had passed. During those days she did a few missions, nothing important though, just helping out here and there.

It was pretty late in the evening. Kaori was sitting with her best friend Shizune in a small pub, close to the entry of the village. Both of them were drinking since quite some time, and the young woman could feel the sake filling her whole body with warmth.

« But tell me, Kaori », said Shizune, opening another botle of sake, « what exactly did happen between Kakashi and you ? »

Kaori knew that her cheeks were a bit red because of the alcohol, but this question made her turn even more red:

« We, uhm… We just kissed. ».

Shizune eyes opened wide : « Whaaaaat, and you wait all this time to tell me that ? I mean, it was pretty obvious that it would happen one day or another but -»  
>« Hey, what do you mean by that ? »<p>

Shizune smiled : « Come on, it is SO obvious between you too. You can see that this guy loves you from miles away. And don't pretend you don't know. ».

Kaori didn't know what to say. Yes she knew. She also knew that she had feelings for him as well. Before she could say anything, Shizune asked another question :  
>« So what are you going to do ? »<br>«I don't really know. I really like him but something is always drawing me back. ».

Shizune sighed : « This is all Itachi's fault, I know that. But what happened, happened years ago. You got to let it go, Kaori. After all he has done, you can't think of him that way anymore. I mean he killed his entire clan, became a rogue ninja, and joined the Akatsuki. He is a threat. ».  
>« I know that ! You don't have to tell me everytime ! And anyway, this has nothing to do with Itachi. ».<br>« So, what makes you hesitate then ? Kakashi is one of the most powerful ninjas in the entire village, and he is pretty handsome, you got to admit that. ».

Before Kaori could answer, the door to the pub was opened by a helpless looking ninja. He seemed to be searching for someone. When he met Kaori's eyes he immediatly came over :  
>« Kaori-sama, we just got a report that pirates settled down not far from the village! »<br>The young woman stood up : « How many of them are there ? Could you identify them ? ».  
>« They actually made the first move towards us. Their leader introduced himself as Akagami Shanks. He said they don't mean any harm, they just want to rest in the village until their ship is repaired. »<br>Akagami… This name was ringing a bell. Where did she hear it ?

« Go immediatly report this to the hokage. Tell her also that I am going down there to meet them. I will take Shizune with me »  
>« Understood ! ». He disappeared in a second.<br>Kaori turned back to her friend : « Let's go ! » 


	6. Shanks

Kaori and Shizune approached the pirates carefully trying not to reveal themselves too soon. The pirates had made a small camp in the forest that was surrounding the village. A lot of noise came from the camp : the men (she couldn't see even one woman), were drinking, eating and shouting a lot. It seemed like they were having a party. Which reminded Kaorie of all the Sake she drunk earlier. *How stupid am I to get drunk so carelessely ?* she thought to herself. They were near them now. Both took a big breath, trying to clear a bit their heads, before showing themselves. But, as they were doing so, a voice talked above all others :

« You don't need to hide from us, were are not going to bite you ! »

Shoked, Kaori and Shizune looked at each other. How did they notice ? It's not like the've been walking without attention, they were ninjas for god's sake ! * Well, that much for a discret approach* Kaori thought. She advanced into the light of the fire the pirates had built. Not knowing who spoke, Kaori said in a loud voice so that all could hear :

«What are you pirates doing here ? Go back to sea, before you get hurt ».

A silence took place. Did she actually intimidate them ? Nah, that would have been to easy. The same voice as before spoke again. Quickly, Kaori looked around trying to find who it belonged to.

The voice belonged to a red-haired man, sitting next to the fire. He was sitting but Kaori could tell that he was pretty tall. He seemed strong too. He had three scars crossing his left eye. A sword was next to him :

« We don't mean you any harm. We just want to get some supplies from your village, so that we can stay here until our ship is repaired. »

« Don't you know where you are ?! The village you want to get into, is Konoha. Pirates can't just walk in as they want. So please, leave these lands. »

The pirate looked at her and continued :

« We know exactly where we are. But we had to stop at the nearest island. Can at least just one go and get the supplies we need ? »

Kaori sighed and said, almost for herself :

« What is it with you pirates, always being so stubborn ? This just reminds me of Luffy all over again. »

At her surprise the the red-haired's eyes lighted up :

« Oh you know Luffy ?! » he laughed loudly « What a coincidence ! Are you a friend of his ? »

Kaori couldn't believe it. He knew Luffy too ?

« Well…yeah I am. »

« That is great ! How has he been ? Getting stronger ? »

The young woman was about to answer him but then stopped, feeling kind of irritated. How could he change the subject so casually ?

« That is not my point, or the reason I came here. You have to go. »

The man stood up. Yup, he was tall, he was definitly tall :

« I am sorry I should have introduced myself earlier : My name is Shanks and this is my crew. I am a good friend of Luffy's. »

He was ? Again, she couldn't believe it :

« How do I know you are not lying ? » But as she asked that question, she knew he wasn't lying. She had a feeling, he was sincere.

Then it all came back to her : the pirate who inspired Luffy so much, who lost an arm, to save Luffy's life when he was a child. Luffy told her that story. Then, it's really Shanks ? The Shanks ? Shizune slowly coughed next to her, which reminded her, that she still had to be professional :

« I have to bring this demand to our Hokage. I can't make that decision myself. Please wait here, I will come back tomorrow morning. »

Shanks smiled :

« Thank you ! Hey, do you want a drink ? We still have plenty of that ! »

Again he laughed loudly. He was so carefree, that it made Kaori want to smile. But she stopped herself. They were still pirates, a possible threat to the village that she had to protect.

« No thank you. We are leaving. »

Saying that, Shizune and her turned their backs and started heading towards the village. She could hear Shanks shout :

« Okay, well thanks ! We will be waiting ! ».

On the way, Shizune turned to Kaori and said with a serious look :

« Are you sure this is a good idea Kaori ? You mom will probably get furious that you didn't do anything about them. »

« I will explain it to her don't worry, she will calm down ! », she answered with a smile


End file.
